Radiator cabinet



May 22, 1934. M. J. M HALE RADIATOR CABINET Filed June 12, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet l May 22, 1934. M. J. McHALE RADIATOR CABINET Filed June 12, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 gwmzntoz Mew/EL c/ We HA4 5:.

A dmmm Patented May 22, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 11 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in radiator cabinets and more particularly to a casing made of detachable metal parts.

It is an object of this invention to provide an improved radiator cabinet or cover which comprises the advantages of being demountable and therefore permitting ease of shipment and assembly as well as cleansing of the radiator with structural features permitting its use as an extra article of furniture such as a shelf for books or window seat or the like.

In addition the novel construction hereinafter described, aids in maintaining the cleanliness of a house or apartment by collecting or serving as a depository for smoke, dust, etc. which in the case of unprotected radiators are disseminated throughout a room, soiling curtains, windows, wall paper, woodwork, etc.

It is also an object of this invention to provide an improved construction which is characterized by being demountable and having mutually interlocking portions which do not require the use of bolts or nuts, or other like fastening means.

Another object of this invention is the provision of an improved radiator cabinet which is so constructed as to deflect or direct the convection currents of air arising from the heated radiator surfaces laterally and outwardly into a room.

With these and other objects in View, which may be incident to my improvements, the invention consists in the parts and combinations to be hereinafter set forth and claimed, with the understanding that the several necessary elements, comprising my invention, may be varied in construction, proportions and arrangement, without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

In order to make my invention more clearly understood, I have shown in the accompanying drawings means for carrying the same into practical effect, without limiting the improvements in their useful applications to the particular constructions, which for the purpose of explanation, have been made the subject of illustration.

In the drawings, like numerals refer to similar parts throughout the several views, in which:

Fig. l is a front elevation, partly in section, of the improved radiator cabinet.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view, with the cover re- 50 v moved, of the structure shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a vertical end section of the cabinet.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged horizontal section taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a vertical section taken on line 5-5 of Fig. 3, and

Fig. 6 is a detail view of the upper right hand corner of Fig. 3.

The improved cabinet comprises a body por-' tion having a front 1, sides 2 and back 3, together with a removable cover 4. A pan 5 is fitted within the top of the cabinet and is supportedon supporting and spacing members 6, as will be described more in detail hereafter. The cabinet may be mounted on legs 7 provided with spacing members 8 adapted to permit variation of the height of the assembly.

The supports 7 may be apertured as indicated at 9 to permit the bolting of the legs to the cabinet structure.

The body of the cabinet, as intimated above, comprises a back panel member 3 having a bottoin internal flange l0 and rolled edges 11 fitting into and co-acting with similar members 12 formed on the side members 2 whereby to form sliding joints, which for convenience will hereinafter be designated as the numeral 13. At its top portion member 3 is provided with an outwardly disposed flange 14 having a depending section 15. The back panel is also provided with a plurality of apertures 16 adapted to receive the supporting and spacing strips 6.

The side members 2 comprise panel sections 17,

18 having a reentrant or dished central panel 19, although it will of course be understood that the sides may be of substantially plain surface or configured as desired.

The panel 18 of the side member is bent at right angles to form a front standard or support 20, the latter being bent back as indicated at 21 to form a substantially U-shaped channel member with the section 18. The section 21 is reversely bent to form a U -shaped member defining a channel 22 adapted to serve as a guide for removable panel member 23. The members 2 are apertured at their inside sections or faces 21 to provide-95.. spaces 24 adapted to receive top and bottom cross members 25, 26. It will be noted that the body of the casing proper comprises a back panel having top and bottom stiffening flanges, the top stiffening flange being adapted to serve as a-cover support. In addition the back panel is provided with edge portions adapted to cooperate with side members to form sliding joints permitting the ready assembly of the parts.

The front portion of the casing or cabinet is formed in the following manner:

A channel-shaped member 25 having sides 27 and 28 is provided with inturned flanges 29 and 30, the latter being formed with 2. rolled over edge or lip 31. The lip 31 may be forced upward- 1 0 ly and slotted to provide slots 32 for receiving the hooked ends 33 of the supporting straps 6. At both ends the cross member is provided at its front section with saw cuts 34 extending in a sufficient distance to permit the bending outward of the end portion 35 to form a spacer for supporting the cross member against members 20 and 18. This construction prevents rattling of the parts by insuring a tight fit. hammered into position after the member has been introduced through the apertures 24.

The top of member 25 is spaced from the inside of the cover 4 to form a channel 4a. This channel allows any heat that passes up along the sides and ends of the water pan to escape out over the top bar 25, instead of forming a heat pocket on top of the water pan 5.

The cross members are provided with registering slots 36, 37 which are so formed as to permit the introduction of key members 38 having bent over handle portions 39 to pass therethrough and abut against the inner sides of section 21 of the corner support or standard.

Member 26 is similar in construction to member 25 with the exception that the lip 31 is spaced apart for its entire length to provide a channel 40 adapted to receive the bottom of the foraminous panel member 23.

It will now be seen that the lateral channels 3 22 together with the bottom channel 31 are adapted to receive the panel member 23 and maintain it in its desired position. When desired the portions encompassing the panel may be forced thereagainst to provide the usual gripping lock.

As intimated above, a flat pan 5 adapted to contain water may be placed on top of the cabinet in order to permit tempering of the atmosphere within a room. This pan is supported on brackets 6 which are provided with lateral upstanding legs 41 and 42. These combination supporting straps and spacing members are so configured and arranged as to maintain the proper spacing between the front and back sections of the cabinet and thus prevent buckling of the structure. The section 41 of the combination spacer-support is provided with flange portions 43 passing through apertures 16 in the panel member. It will thus be seen that the strips are firmly secured in position by means of the tongues 33 gripping the flanges 31 of the front support member and tongues 43 engaging the apertures 16 of the back panel. In addition the tongues 43 serve as supports for the cover 4 when the latter is raised to permit access to the pan 5 or to the interior of the cabinet.

Referring now more particularly to the cover member the latter comprises the usual top having a front flanged end 44 having a crimped end 45 and having a back edge 46 with a flange 47 spaced from and parallel to the top of the cover. The flange 4'7 is adapted to engage a depending flange 48 formed integrally with section 14 of the panel member 3.

The novel construction just described provides a hinge construction for a cover, the section 46 Theportion 35 is with doors 50. These members are adapted to swing on pins 51 which pass through the strap supports 52, 53, formed by depressing portions of the sides and the door respectively, care being taken that the apertures so formed are in aligned relation. These apertures may be formed by slitting the metal in any desired manner and then forcing the tcngues 52 and 53 away from the body of the metal. To provide the necessary tension on the pins 51 the tongues 52 and 53 may be hammered into engagement therewith. This construction permits the hinges to be easily formed and without involving any extraneous parts, such as bushings, bolts, nuts, etc.

While the cabinet as disclosed is adapted to fit over the radiator, and is supported on the ends of the members or sections 13 and 20, it will be appreciated that occasions may arise where differences in level between the front and back portions of the structure may occur due to variations in the floor level. Aside from this a good many users may prefer to provide the cabinets with legs. For this purpose leg members '7 of any desired configuration may be provided with tongues or angle members 60 adapted to be in serted in the sections 20 and be held thereagainst by a suitable bolt and nut construction, not shown, cooperating with apertures 9, previously described. At the bottom of the legs inturned flanges 61 may be provided and be suitably apertured to receive the bolt nut construction 8 having bearing surface 62. These members may be adjusted in any manner providing ready means for varying the height of the back and front portions thus permitting the maintenance of the pan 5 and the cover member 4 in any desired plane.

Referring again to Figure 3 it will be noted that convection currents set up by enclosed radiators will be directed upwardly against the pan 5 and such currents laden with moisture will pass downwardly and outwardly through the perforations in member 23. This'latter member may be made of sheet metal punched with holes of any :lesired diameter or it may include any desired wire mesh constructionJ By providing a unilateral perforated front or side for the cabinet the moisture laden warm air passes into the room and towards the center thereof, thus permitting the warm air currents to ascend upwardly and return via the ceiling and the cooler walls to the cabinet and its contained heat source. smoke particles or other dirt which may be con tainec. i or conveyed by the heated air is thus distributed uniformly over the room and permitted to precipitate before reaching the relatively cooler walls and drapings usually asso-' ciated therewith.

The radiator cabinets of the present invention may be constructed of any desired sheet metal in any suitable gauge and may be painted or otherwise treated to present a pleasing surface. In addition the construction herein described is susceptible of wide variation in design to conform to the particular requirements in any given room. The design may be so arranged as to permit the use of the cabinet as an extra article of furniture, as for example, a single shelf book case, or window seat. In such instances, the invention comprehends the association of an insulating member on top of the member 4 to insulate the articles placed on the shelf from the heat of the radiator.

It will now be appreciated that there has been provided an improved radiator cabinet which is Any dust,

1 tom casing composed of a plurality ofinterlocking parts, a pair of key members being all that is required to lock the parts in their operative positions. The cabinets may be made up in a wide variety of sizes,'the panels-and sections being varied as desired. In addition the constructions disclosed are substantially rigid in use and of rugged construction while made up of relatively cheap material assembled at comparatively low cost.

While I have shown and described the preferred embodiment of my invention, I wish it to be understood that I do not confine myself to the precise details of construction herein set forth, by way of illustration, as it is apparent that many changes and variations may be made therein, by those skilled in the art, without departing from the spirit of the invention, or exceeding the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A cabinet for radiators including a cover and a casing formed with a back and ends in demountably mutually interlocking engagement, the ends being dished to form re-entrant portions and being inwardly flanged to provide vertical front sections, demountable horizontally extending cross members disposed in said front sections, a foraminous panel mounted between the said cross members and vertical sections, key members so constructed and arranged as to lock the cross members and vertical sections in cooperative relationship, supporting braces removably associated with one of said cross members and the back of the casing, a flange on the upper portion of the back, a cover for the casing, and means on 7 the cover engaging the supporting braces and the flange on the back to support the cover in its open position.

2. A radiator cabinet, comprising a casing having demountably interlocking back and end members, front vertical flanges on the end members, cross members disposed between the said vertical flanges, a foraminous panel removably disposed between said flanges and cross members, supporting braces between the top cross member and the back the ends of the braces extending through said back, a flange on the back juxtaposed to the protruding ends of said braces, a cover mounted on the casing, and means formed on the cover to engage the said brace ends and juxtaposed back flange.

3. A radiator cabinet including a cover and comprising a casing having demountably mutually interlocking back and end members, front vertical flanges on the end members, cross memlbers disposed between the said vertical flanges the cross members having keyways formed near the ends thereof, key members disposed in said keyways, locking the channel members to the vertical flanges, a foraminous panel removably disposed between said flanges and cross members, supporting braces between the top cross member and the back the ends of the braces extending through said back, a flange on the back juxtaposed to the protruding ends of said braces, a cover mounted on the casing, and means formed on the cover to engage the said brace ends and juxtaposed back flange.

4. In a radiator cabinet, a cover having a back edge with an inwardly extending flange, a bothaving a back with a top outwardly and downwardly extending flange, the downwardly extending portion of the flange extending over the inwardly extending flange formed on the back edge of the cover, and means passing through the back in juxtaposition to the flanges to form retaining means for the said cover flange.

'5. A channel shaped member having flanges at its side ends parallel with and spaced from the base, one of said flanges being reversely bent on itself to define a groove, the base portion having spacing members formed integrally therewith near the ends of the channel shaped member.

6. An end member for a radiator cabinet comprising a flat body portion having a centrally depressed section, a rolled and angularly displaced fold at one edge forming a cooperating member of a sliding joint, a flange at the other edge including an L-shaped section having an outward fold formed as an extension of the base of the L, and spaced apertures in the L base.

7. In a radiator cabinet, a casing having demountably and mutually interlocking back and side portions, vertical flanges integral with the sides and so related thereto as to form front edge members, the front edge members extending in wardly and having aligned apertures formed near the top and bottom thereof, channel members seated in said apertures, the channel members being provided with keyways and keys disposed in said keyways locking the channel members to the front edge members.

8. In a radiator cabinet, a casing having demountably and mutually interlocking back and side portions, vertical flanges integral with the sides and so related thereto as to form front edge members, the front edge members extending inwardly and having aligned apertures formed near the top and bottom thereof, the apertures being spaced from the front of the members, horizontally positioned parallel U-shaped cross members disposed in the apertures, vertically aligned keyways near the ends of the cross members, end lips on the bottom of the U, and keys disposed in said keyways locking the channel members to the front edge members, the end lips being constructed and arranged to space the channel members from the front edge members substantially the same distance that the apertures in the inwardly extending portion of the front edge members are spaced from the front edge.

9. In a radiator cabinet, a casing having demountably and mutually interlocking back and side portions, vertical flanges integral with the sides and so related thereto as to form front edge members, the front edge members extending inwardly and having aligned apertures formed near the top and bottom thereof, parallel channel members disposed in the apertures, flanges on the inwardly extending portions of the front edge members and the bottom channel member, a foraminous panel in the flanges, and spacing supports between the upper said channel and the back of the casing constructed and arranged to lock the cover to the back of the casing and brace the front and back of the casing.

10. In a radiator cabinet, a casing having de mountably and mutually interlocking back and side portions, vertical flanges integral with the sides and so related thereto as to form front edge members extending inwardly and having aligned apertures formed near the top and bottom thereof, parallel channel members disposed in the apertures, the ends of said members abutting the sides of the casing and means inserted in the channel members in abutting relation to the inwardly extending portions of the front edge members whereby to lock the assembly together.

11. In a radiator cabinet, a casing having demountably and mutually interlocking back and side portions, vertical flanges integral with the arranged to space the cross members from the front portions and keys in the keyways, said keys and keyways being associated with the inwardly extending portion of the front edges so as to lock the cross members to the vertical front portions.

MICHAEL J. MCHALE. 

